To Love Ru - Partners In Love
by Dragondemolition
Summary: Hero Kaozaki is in love with his classmate, Yui Kotegawa. At the same time, Yuuki Rito, wants to confess to Haruna Sairenji. The two of them quickly find out about each their problems, and decide to help each other out with confessing. Little do they know they both will learn that Hero's past is none like the one they thought it was. Rated M for mature and graphic content.
1. Chapter 1 - Hero Kaozaki

_To Love Ru_

 _Partners In Love_

 _Chapter 1 – Hero Kaozaki_

My name is Hero Kaozaki. I'm a completely normal high school boy, with no idea what I want to do with my future. No plans, no expectations, nothing. My grades was decent, and I pulled through fine. No one expected any better of me, so I could live my life without fearing to let anyone down.

Normally, you'd expect that was a really good thing. But to me, it was horrible.

I wanted someone to set a limit for me to surpass. Because without it, I didn't feel like I could get any better. I mean, why get better if you didn't feel like you had to?

As to why I wanted to become better, there was a special someone's expectations I wanted to meet. I wanted to impress Yui Kotegawa.

Kotegawa was known in the entire school as the strictest person around. Being the head member for the disciplinary committee, she was a stickler for rules, but would often loosen up to her strict discipline whenever she was around friends.

She would seem like a very harsh and judging person, but she was really a very sweet and warm person to whoever she cared about.

I had learned that experience first hand, as I was already good friends with her, which I had been for a while now. I had personally felt her disciplinary wrath once about half a year ago, when she confiscated one of my handheld consoles.

I don't remember all the details, but somehow we ended up as really great friends after that. Though it's never been more than hanging out at school, or texting together whenever we were free. I had come to gain a deep respect for her. She appreciated discipline, and she made sure to have her homework done on time, and to the point, often being the top graded student in the class.

I deeply admired her determination to do her very best, and I wanted to learn from her. But we had never talked much about our grades whenever we hung out in-between classes, which surprised me to be completely honest.

I realized that I was in love with her a couple of weeks ago, when I caught myself staring at her when we ate our bentos together on the top of the school's roof. My heart had began pumping like crazy, and a shiver had ran along my spine when she looked up at me. I almost felt completely lost in her chocolate brown eyes, and I had blushed as I looked away, returning to my bento.

Since then I knew. I didn't know when the change happened, how or why it did. But I knew that somehow, I had fallen in love with Yui Kotegawa, the girl many of my male friends saw as one of the most inapproachable people in the school because of her personality.

Ever since then, I had been wondering how I should confess to her. As I walked down the hall that I day, I ran over my options once more.

"A card in her locker? No that's too corny" I mumbled quietly "Under the sakura trees? Nah, that's too overused"

I had ran over it again and again in my head for weeks. I just couldn't decide, and it was probably my nervousness that made me so indecisive. The possibilities were endless, and I thought it over again and again.

But now I had finally decided to just step up to her, and just ask her. No hesitation, no sway in willpower. I was just going to do it. And I was going to do it today.

Just as I tried to clear my thoughts and make sure I had thought about every possible solution, I suddenly bumped into someone. I looked up, and felt myself freeze up and turn pale as I realized it was Kotegawa.

"K-K-Kotegawa, I-I-I…."

My teeth were chattering, and my knees were trembling. I could feel my stomach turn around itself as my nervousness multiplied with a million, and my voice pretty much shrank into a squeak.

"Ah! Kaozaki! I was looking for you!" She said with a warm smile, brandishing her bento in front of me "It's lunch break, so I wanted to know if you wanted to eat lunch on the roof, like always?"

My teeth were chattering even more intensely than before, but I hesitantly nodded as I tried to pull my stuff together.

"Y-Yeah, sure. Sounds good"

Her smiled suddenly turned into a worried frown. She tilted her head a little bit as she studied my expression intently.

"Kaozaki, are you sick?" She asked with a frown "You know you should go home and rest if you are, so you don't inflict the rest of us"

I smiled internally at her strict tone. Behind her lecturing manner, there was a tint of worry behind her sentences, there always were. She had always wanted the best for her fellow students, no matter who it might be.

"N-No, I'm not sick at all" I mumbled quietly "I don't know what's wrong with me to be honest"

Her frown only deepened a little as she stepped forward and put her palm to my forehead. She hummed quietly in unsure consideration.

"You don't seem warm, but still" she mumbled quietly Have you been buttoning up your shirt properly, like I told you to?"

I chuckled quietly at her worried tone. She was almost like everyone's strict mother at times, making sure everyone were doing well, when at the same time making sure their discipline and work morale was at it's absolute best, though there was always the delinquent types who weren't really to save. Of course I wasn't like that, so I never clashed with her intensely.

"Well no, but still, it's high summer, right?" I said with a chuckle "You can't really catch a cold in such warm weather, right?"

"You'd be surprised how easily someone can get sick, Kaozaki" She said with a small smile "Then what's wrong if you're not sick?"

"I'm telling you, nothing's wrong" I said with a chuckle, our casual chat having brought me back to my senses, and to my more laidback mindset.

We walked by each other's side together until we reached the school buildings roof, and sat down at one of the benches there, and chat and eat our bentos like we always did.

In the end, I never managed to gather the courage and confess. I was depressed when I walked my way home. I packed up my things and set to head home, but when I walked through the quad, I heard a female voice call out to me.

"Hey! Hero!"

I looked back over my shoulder, and smiled softly as I realized it was Lala Deviluke, the infamous Devilukean alien princess, who was widely known in the entire school as the very first visitor from outer space. She had just appeared one day out of nowhere, and began to live in Rito Yuuki's house. Speaking of him, that same guy was walking beside her as they approached me.

Rito Yuuki was a pretty normal guy, though he was infamous for his infinite streak of clumsiness and unlucky incidents, often being chased through the quad by an angry female.

Them and I had spoken on various locations, and had even hanged out in the same crowds a couple of times, though I never made much of a deal out of the fact that Lala was an alien princess. She was still a living conscious being, so I didn't want to treat her like some kind of celebrity.

"Hey guys" I said with a small smile "What's up?"

"You just seem a little down, Hero" Rito said with a concerned frown "Are you depressed or something?"

I blushed a little as I nodded and sighed. I wasn't really in the mood to talk about today's failure, so I sighed and tried dismissing the subject as just a small thing.

"No, it's nothing guys" I said with a false smile "I'm just unsure what I want to do about things"

"Huh? Things?" Lala asked with a confused expression "What do you mean?"

"That doesn't matter" I said with a shake of my head "It's nothing important. How are you guys anyway?"

The two of them looked at each other for a moment, before offering for me to walk with them on their way home. I of course accepted the kind gesture, and hanged my school back in my hand over my shoulder as we walked alongside each other.

The sky was still a very light blue as we walked our way home, indicating that the sun was about to begin to set. I always loved the way the summer sun set in this area. It was always so beautiful around here.

I had managed to dismiss the problem I'd rather not approach, so instead we happily chitchatted and made small talk all the way back to Rito's house. As we reached the small gate outside their house, they turned towards me with smiles on their faces.

"Mikan hasn't been grocery shopping yet" Rito said with a smile "If you go with us and do that, she might just let you stay for dinner"

"That actually sounds like an awesome idea" I said with a smile, my depression from my earlier failures having disappeared a long time ago "I'd love to"

I smiled quietly and stepped inside politely, greeting Mikan, Rito's little sister, as I stepped into the living room.

"Hi, Hero" She said with a soft smile "Are you staying over?"

"Yeah, for dinner" I said with a small smile "I might even stay over night, since my parents are out of town for today"

"Oh really? What is their work position again?" She asked as she went through the fridge in the nearby kitchen.

"my dad works at a powerplant in town, and often has to stay there overnight" I said with a smile "And believe it or not, my mom is a cop. Justice never sleeps"

I chuckled quietly as I thought about them. I often looked up to them, especially my mother. They'd had both worked hard to get to where they were now, so naturally I had built an intense feeling of respect for them. The only small thing about it is that I don't get to see them a lot besides in the weekends, which had been a way for me to learn to take care of myself.

Though I didn't really mind it much. Whenever I was a little bit lonely, I would just text or call a person and ask if they could meet somewhere so we could do something, not a big deal. But at the same time, it had had a positive effect, making me teach myself to cook, clean and etcetera.

"Anyway, can I borrow your bathroom?" I asked quietly "I need a bath"

"Sure, you can ask for some new clothes from Rito" Mikan said before going back to the fridge, looking over what she needed for the upcoming shopping trip.

"But don't take too long, okay?" She said with a smile "Rito said you'd be coming with me to buy groceries"

I nodded and quickly talked with Rito, borrowing a spare set of clothes from him before setting off towards the bathroom.

Once there, I quickly stripped down and filled the bathtub, steam filling up the bathroom and obscuring my view. sinking myself into the hot soothing water of the tub, sighing blissfully as I let the surface of the water rise all the way up to my nose.

Despite Mikan's warning of not taking too long, I could soon feel the time slip away from me as I relaxed in the tub, my head swimming with thoughts of the events of that day, mostly of thoughts of when I ate together with Kotegawa.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't even realize the door to the bathroom outside had begun slide open slowly, and a figure began to unclothe itself in the middle room, before stepping inside the bathing area.

When I finally woke up from my trance, I looked out the window. The sky had darkened significantly, and I realized it was getting late.

"Oh Christ, I should get out quick" I mumbled quietly as I sat up onto my knees in the tub "Mikan might be waiting for me"

But just as I was about to stand up and step out of the bathtub, I suddenly felt a soft sensation towards my back. It was in two places, and it felt round and soft, followed by a soft giggle and a whip of a sweet smell, like girly perfume. I blushed dark red as I looked back over my shoulder.

It was a girl, with a bright and flirty smile on her lips. She had short pink hair that only reached a bit past her ears, and had a slender and feminine body, a long slender and black tail hanging behind her, tipped with a black spade. I knew who she was, but I had never directly interacted with her. It was Momo Deviluke, Lala's little sister, who had come to earth after Lala.

She giggled quietly and pressed her body up against my back again as I stared at her in shock.

"M-M-Momo! What the hell are you doing in here!?"

"I was just thinking to welcome you" She said with a small smile, her tail swaying slowly and teasingly "And I've never really seen you around. So I thought I'd introduce myself"

She squeezed my body a little with her arms. When had she snaked her arms around my waist anyway!?

"I-I-I-I's this h-how you greet everyone!?" I mumbled quietly, staring at her in disbelief.

"Not normally" She said with a giggle "But I know you're a friend of Rito's, so you can have this special treatment"

She began rubbing up against me and I couldn't help but let out a small moan as I felt her body against mine.

"P-Please, M-Momo… Stop" I mumbled quietly, then tried raising my voice into a yell "MOMO!"

~Later that evening~

I sighed silently and stared up at the ceiling in the living room, the room dark and only lit up by the moonlight outside. I was about to fall asleep, but my thoughts kept me awake.

"Kotegawa… If only I could confess…" I mumbled quietly.

Suddenly I heard footsteps coming down from the second floor. It turned out to be Rito.

"Oh, hey Rito" I said, drawing a breath of relief "I thought it was Momo for a moment"

"Why would you fear Momo?" He asked, a bit confused.

"W-Well I don't but… J-Just forget it" I mumbled quietly, embarrassed at the thought of what she did earlier that day "D-Did you hear what I said?"

"Yeah, sorry" He said with a small smile "Something about confessing to Yui Kotegawa?"

I blushed dark red and nodded shyly. I didn't mean for anyone else to know about my crush on Kotegawa.

"Yeah… I've been crushing on her for a while"

"But, why Kotegawa?" he asked with a small smile "I mean, she is a good friend and all, but I'd normally consider Kotegawa too unapproachable to become something like that"

"It's just… If you take time to dig under the strict shell on the outside…" I mumbled quietly, fidgeting nervously on the couch "She is really a sweet girl. She's affectionate and gentle… Which I know might seem as a surprise"

He nodded and chuckled silently, then drew a silent sigh.

"Yeah, a little bit" He said with a chuckle "But anyway, it's really great you feel like that towards her. We're in the same boat you and I"

"Oh yeah, you're in love with Sairenji, right?"

He nodded softly. I was surprised he had admitted to it. Normally he was so inexperienced that just the mention of the female body was enough to make his face burn red, and steam rise from his ears.

"I've been in love with her for a while" He mumbled with a sigh "But whenever I get a chance to confess to her, I either back out at the last second, or get interrupted somehow… It's getting a bit annoying to be honest"

"And I bet all the accidents that happens around you doesn't help, right?" I said with a wry smile.

"Nope, not at all" He sighed again and looked up at me "In that case, you're actually a bit better of, Hero"

"Huh? Why?"

I was a bit confused. What could he mean?

"Well, you don't get bound into embarrassing or confusing situations like I do" He said with a soft smile.

"Then what do you call what happened between me and Momo today?" I snapped back at him with a sigh "I could have lived without that happening. So embarrassing"

He chuckled quietly and shook his head.

"That's only once, man. I've been in situations like that far more than you"

"I guess that's true"

We fell silent from then on, and he scratched his cheek as a silence fell over us.

"Well, I was just going to brush my cheek, so excuse me" He said with a smile before turning and walking down the hall.

Suddenly, a wild idea popped up in my head. We were in the same situation, so maybe…

"Hey, Rito…" I said as I hurried after him "What do you say we help each other out?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

He turned towards me.

"Well, as you said, we're in the same boat" I said with a smile "Maybe we should help each other confess! Like, partnering up, for at least morale and confidence boosts"

His face lighted up in realization, and he smiled at me.

"That's actually a great idea!" he said excitedly "Alright, let's do it"

I nodded at him.

'Kotegawa… I WILL confess someday. I swear to god…'

 **A/N**

 **Hey everybody! Welcome to my very first chapter of To Love Ru – Partners In Love.**

 **I got this idea when I started watching To Love Ru – Darkness The 2nd, and I just couldn't help myself but follow up and write the story. Hope it came out fine, and that you guys enjoyed.**

 **As always, please leave feedback in form of a review. I will always appreciate constructive criticism.**

 **Anyway, hope you guys had an amazing day, and peace out. See ya.**


	2. Chapter 2 - Endless Struggle

_To Love Ru_

 _Partners In Love_

 _Chapter 2 – Endless Struggle_

That morning i sighed softly as i rolled out of bed. I was groggy and tired since Rito and I had stayed up and talked to each other for a long while about how we each were gonna confess to each other's crushes.

I looked at myself in the mirror. I looked exhausted, even though i at least got several hours of sleep last night. I had dark spots under my eyes and i almost seemed like i had aged, even though i knew that was definitely not true.

I pulled on my newly washed school uniform, wondering if i should pull on the jacket as well, just to seem proper to impress Kotegawa, but I ended up deciding against it. It was just too hot out that morning to even dress up completely. I even left a few buttons open, since it was so hot. As i walked past my mirror in the hall, I took a quick look at myself in it once again.

"Hmm, maybe it's a bit too much?" I mumbled, seening how a lot of my upper chest was exposed "It reminds me how Rito usually dresses"

I chuckled softly at my own joke and confirmed the look as acceptable, before heading downstairs. I wonder what's gonna happen today? With Lala and the other devilukean princesses around, you really never can tell.

~At school the same day, Yami's POV~

I sighed softly as i walked through the halls at school that day, the noon class having just ended, the other students had been dismissed to go to lunch. I was personally headed towards the library, to fetch myself a book to read along with eating my snacks, which i had in a crusty bag under my left arm. Studying on Earth's cultures was a very important step to blend in like a true assassin.

Though, when i finally reached the library, I met someone unexpected. It was Kyoko Mikado Sensei, along with my sister Mea, standing on each their own side in an aisle of the library. They looked up as they noticed me approach, and they looked like they had been expecting me.

"Oh, Yami" Mikado Sensei mumbled quietly, nodding at me "We were waiting for you"

"Good to see you again, sis" Mea said before giving me a small hug "D-Do you know why we were searching for you?"

I frowned quietly in confusion and simply shook my head lightly. They hadn't sought me out beforehand to this situation, so i had no idea why they might be worried.

"I have no idea, Mea" I mumbled softly as i took a bite out of one of my snacks "What is it?"

"You know... "He" is about to turn 18" Mea mumbled with a small frown "And, his foster parents are insisting they want to tell him all about our relation to him on his eighteenth birthday... You know who i am talking about, right?"

I widened my eyes a little as her sentence went on. Now i really did understand what they were asking me about. It was true, he was about to turn 18 human years. And from what i knew, his foster parents had wanted to keep the truth from him until they found him mature enough to understand the truth, which is why they had waited until this long to tell him.

"Let me guess" i mumbled softly, cutting Mea off just as she was about to speak up again "His foster parents are insisting for us to be there, once they break him the news, correct?"

She and Mikado Sensei both nodded quietly. It seemed like i had hit the head on the nail.

"Of course i am going to be there, but..." i mumbled, trailing off a little "Are you sure you want him to know the truth? It is a very dark past he has been through after all"

"That might be true Yami, but he deserves to know" Mikado Sensei mumbled as she stepped forward "He will find out eventually, and he will then seek us out to ask why we never told the truth to begin with. He doesn't deserve that"

I nodded quietly and sighed. For him to get emotionally scarred from hearing that his past was like that... It wasn't likely that he would actually take any phsychical damage from it, but it might still hurt him a lot. I was worried what the consequenses of him knowing the truth might be.

"So, do we do it on the exact date of his birthday?" I asked silently, Mikado nodding a little.

"Yes, we are" She mumbled softly "But you need to be prepared for anything. If he gets enraged for us not telling him sooner, he might actually be able to use his powers, despite never using them before"

I nodded softly. I knew what she meant, i often got much more deadly if i was pissed off in the process.

"Understood"

And with that, we went each our own way, splitting up and heading towards each our own goals, me being going back to the library to continue studying.

~At the cafeteria, Hero's POV~

I sighed silently as i got my food from the canteen lady, and looked around, trying to find Kotegawa. I wasn't sure if i was going to confess today, i just didn't feel the courage. I was still a little depressed from yesterday's failure, but i still wanted to hang out with her like i always used to.

I quickly spotted her as she waved to me through the crowd, and i smiled quietly as i quickly jocked over to her.

"Hey, Kotegawa" I said with a smile as i finally approached her "Are we going to the roof today?"

She looked at me apologetically and sighed softly as she shook her head.

"I don't think so, sorry" She mumbled quietly "The wind is picking up, you see, and it get's quite chilly"

"Aww, but we always go up there"

I pouted a bit as she declined the offer of eating bentos at the rooftop like we always used to do. But it was definitely true that it wouldn't be nearly as enjoyable if we couldn't even keep warm, so we decided to go back to class and eat our lunch there.

After getting scolded by Kotegawa for sitting on top of my desk, i chuckled softly and settled into my chair instead, and began digging into my lunch. My mother had done it perfectly today, just like every other day.

"I seriously think i would evaporate if my mom stopped making these" I mumbled, my mouth filled with fried chicken.

"You need to learn some food manners, Kaozaki" She said with a laugh as she ate her lunch, much more held back and decently than myself.

I didn't care much for that though, as long as this delicious lunch box was basically screaming for my attention from the top of my desk.

I widened my eyes a little at her laid-back attitude. Normally she would have ripped me a new one for even considering eating like an animal in front of her, but today she took it surprisingly easy, which was something very new for the usually wellkept and strict class rep i knew.

"Are you not going to jab at me for my eating manners like you usually do?" I asked her challengingly, as i looked up from my bento for a moment.

"Why? This is how you always eat, right?"

I could almost imagine my expression with that proclamation. My bento would fall out of my hands and onto my desk with a clunk, and my jaw would hit the floor with a crack.

"Who are you, and where is the real Kotegawa?" I joked, starring at her in disbelief.

She simply smiled and continued eating her bento.

"What, are you saying i have to be strict to be me?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yeah, that is definitely what i'm saying" I mumbled as i starred at her "If you were a character in a series, this would certainly be out of character"

She glared at me and shook her head dismissively.

"Eat your bento, or i will stuff it up your butt"

I widened my eyes at her threatening words, and immediately began eating again. I understood her threat though, i might have taken it a bit too far.

But now that we were sitting here idly, chatting, maybe it was time. It could have been the best option for me to confess, trying to be casual and just ask her if she wanted to go out with me.

I glanced up at her. It didn't seem like she thought that this was anything out of the ordinary. This definitely was the right time.

'Come on, just ask her' i thought to myself desperately 'Just do it. Come on. Confess dammit!'

I raised my gaze and starred up at her determinedly. She looked at me a bit surprised as i stood up suddenly, my chair clattering behind me as it fell over.

"Kotegawa, I-!"

I was cut off before i had a chance to talk, as the door to the class burst open. In stepped none other than Lala Deviluke, wearing red bloomers and a white shirt as she strode up to me.

"Hero! Can i have ten minutes of your time real quick?" taking my hand in hers before i even had the time to answer "I need help with testing a new invention!"

"H-Huh!? But why do you need my help!?" I shouted in response, feeling Kotegawa and the rest of the class starring at us "Why can't you use Rito, like you always do?!"

"But he's still in the changing room!" she mumbled with a pout "We're coming straight from gym class after all"

I looked at her adorable pouting face for a moment, and it didn't take long for me to cave in under the pressure.

"Okay, okay, i'll do it" i mumbled silently "So, what do you need me to do?"

"Ah, thank you, Hero!" She shouted excitedly as she brought out her invention which she held in her other hand "Dada! This is Mui Mui Make-up-Kun!"

I looked at the small box she had taken out from god knows where, and as soon as she finished telling it's name, numorous small white hands began to wirr out of small holes of the box, some of them with various make-up items between their fingers.

I gulped quietly as they began wirring towards me. The fact that Lala's inventions always ended up in failure, was a well-known phenomenon at this school, so i was worried what might happen. Despite that however, i continued to stand still. I should have ran for my life.

Instead of giving me make-up on, which was it's purpose, the machine's small hands suddenly tossed their make-up utensils aside, and began violantly gripping at my clothes, and before i could even react, shout, anything at all, my vision suddenly flipped on it's head. I looked down, and i suddenly realized that i was hanging above the rest of the class, upside down.

"Wahh! Lala! Get me down from here!" I shouted in terror, starring down at the Devilukean princess who was looking back up at me with an expression mixed between surprise and amusement.

I blushed dark red as the small hands suddenly begin ripping more intensely at my school uniform, and at no time at all, had discarded both my jeans and the button-up shirt that i had chosen this morning, before tossing me aside. Luckily, Kotegawa and some of her friends was there to catch me before i made a headfirst collision with the classroom wall.

"T-Thanks girls" i mumbled, and they nodded at me before i stood up "LALA! Turn that thing off!"

She nodded at me softly and quickly whipped out something that looked like a futuristic pistol, before pointing it at the robot monster she had created herself, and shooting a huge hole straight in the middle of the small box, making the arms collapse onto the ground with loud bangs and clunks. I sighed softly in relief before sitting down against the wall, and hiding as much of my body as i could.

"Thanks. Now... COULD SOMEONE GET ME SOME CLOTHES!?"

~later that day, Hero's POV~

I was currently walking home to my parents. School had just ended, and student after student filed out of the main entrance after having put on their shoes. Somewhere down by a sidestreet i saw Rito and Lala, talking and laughing with each other as they made their way to what i assumed was Rito's home.

I was kind of in my own thoughts all day today. I was about to confess to Kotegawa, but Lala cut me off. Of course i didn't hold a grudge against her for it, she couldn't have known. But still, i felt irritated on her for blowing up my chance with that nasty invention.

As i continued to have my thoughts in the clouds, i suddenly felt a pat on my shoulder, and i turned my head to see who it was. To my own happiness/terror, it was Kotegawa who had caught up with me.

"Oh, hey Yu-! I mean Kotegawa" I said, catching myself in almost saying her first name, which would imply i felt stronger emotions for her, than her for me "How are you doing?"

"I'm still feeling bad for what happened earlier" She mumbled as she looked at me with a worried expression "Are you sure you're not injured or something? The robot did mess you up pretty bad"

"I told you, i'm fine, haha" I said with a smirk "I'm not bleeding, and I don't hurt anywhere"

"Still, there is injuries you can't actually feel" She mumbled.

Classic Yui Kotegawa. Worried to no end.

"I'm telling you, i'm fine" I said with a smile as i patted her head "You guys caught me after all. I'm pretty sure i would have been hurt if you hadn't, so no need for worry"

"Hey! I told you to stop patting my head!" she yelled with a small smile as she swatted my hand away "You'll mess up my hair"

"But your pouting is just way too adorable, Kotegawa" I said with a laugh, trying to pat her again.

She grabbed my arm and pushed me away with a laugh, and before any of us knew it, we were in a full playful wrestling match, and ended up rolling down a nearby slope that ran down to the river running through the city. We laughed silently as we landed at the foot of the slope, looking over at each other with baited breaths and wide exhausted smiles.

"We've always been like this haven't we?" She suddenly asked, and i looked over at her with a confused expression.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Don't you remember? We've done this before you know" She said with a smile "We used to wrestle all the time when we were kids"

I looked back through the wheel of memory in my head, and i widened my eyes once i remembered.

"Oh yeah! I remember that" I said with a laugh as i mumbled over the funny memory "We had a set of boxing gloves each and wrestled all day"

"Yeah... Good memories huh?" She mumbled, before she turned her gaze to the sky "Too bad we aren't kids anymore"

"Hey, we'll make new memories" i said with an enthusiastic smile "I mean, maybe we're not kids anymore, but we are teens, right? So we'll just have to make even more memories"

"Yeah, i guess so" She said, her smile slowly returning to her lips "hey, Kaozaki?"

"Hmm?" I hummed softly as i looked back at her.

"Thanks for cheering me up"

"No problem"

~That evening, Hero's POV~

I sighed silently and plopped down on the couch in the living room along with my parents. Kotegawa was still filling my head, and it almost seemed like my brain had decided to discontinue all other thought-trains than the ones that were about Kotegawa. I couldn't think of anything or anyone else lately, and it really got on my nerves.

Apparently, my parents had realized something was amiss as well, cause they kept asking me the same question.

"Honey, are you okay?" My mother started, like always "You seem depressed again today..."

"It's okay, mom, i'm fine, really" I mumbled silently "Please stop asking anymore"

"But honey, i'm worried" She mumbled, pressing the issue "You've really seemed down lately, and... Well, i want to know if something is going on"

I had truthfully left my parents out on the fact that i had a crush on Yui Kotegawa, because i didn't want to worry them with my troubles. But apparently, they could easily see through my carefree act.

"Seriously, i think you've asked 50 times this week" I mumbled, smiling up at her appreciatively "I appreciate your worry, but please, i'm fine"

And with that, before i would hear any more of my mom's interrogations, i headed upstairs quickly and dove into safety behind my room door. I could almost hear my mom's worried sigh all the way from there, but decided to try and ignore it and put on some music to try and block everything else out. My parents, my thoughts, the world. I just wanted to be an empty shell for a moment, without worrying about anything.

"Man... When did my life turn into a drama movie?" I mumbled silently, before i rolled over onto my side, and quickly fell asleep.

As the grip of sleep fell over me, a reel of memories ran through my head. All about Kotegawa. And as the night came and went, i could go through the most wonderful dreams of me and her together.

Me and Kotegawa. Together forever...


	3. Chapter 3 - The Day Of Revelation

_To Love Ru_

 _Partners In Love_

 _Chapter 3 – The Day Of Revelation_

~In Town, Yami's POV~

I was currently walking down the street in the middle of the giant crowd, deep in thought. As of that moment, his 18th birthday was growing ever closer, and with it, the revelation of his dark past, which neither I, nor Mea knew anything off, besides the basic details. We knew what had happened, but neither of us had actually been there when it happened. When he was taken from us.

Naturally, since I had basically never known him, the sorrow of his absence since childhood had been minimal, at least in my case. I was unsure of Mea or Lunatique though. In Mea's case, she's a lot more cheerful than myself, tending to be affected more by sadness than me. And with Lunatique, she is pretty much his mother. It was only natural for her to feel pain.

I knew that both of them were going to be there when we were going to reveal everything to him, but it was something we had to do, for everyone's sake.

But, even though when I was thinking all of this, I was still wondering how things would turn out if we just kept the truth from him. After all, his only problem as of now, was his obvious crush for Yui. Even I, a weapon knowing nothing of love, thought it was obvious how hard he had fallen for her, but somehow, he had failed as of yet to tell her about his feelings.

That was his biggest problem as of now, beside maybe school and homework. If we ever told him about this, we'd bring a whole heap of new problems and thoughts into his life, and we'd only bring him more trouble. But even so, the fact that we'd keep it from her might be even more devastating upon his mental state.

I hadn't interacted much with him since I started at his school, not before he started hanging out with Rito and the others anyway. I eventually learned that he had been going to both ground and middle school in town, and eventually started at the school I'm currently attending.

It was only once I had known him for around 2 years and that I finally found my way back into the embrace of my mother, Lunatique, that Mikado approached me and Mea, and dropped the bombshell. That a third entity known as Black Void, had been created along with me and Mea. That we actually had a twin brother.

The shock had been intense to be honest. I didn't know why Mikado, or Lunatique, would keep this from us. I guess their best excuse would be to wait for the best time to reveal the truth to us, but I honestly don't believe in that excuse. My best guess would be that they couldn't bring themselves to do it until then.

None of that mattered anyway. The fact was, that neither of the three of us, knew the full truth. Mea and I knew how he was taken from our mother's capable embrace, but we didn't know the story after that. How he had managed to escape the scientist that took him, and how he managed to get to earth and find a foster family of his own, without being taken by the claws of evil.

But despite all of this, the day of revelation was drawing near. This weekend, about 4 days from now, he would turn 18 earth years, which apparently was a big moment in any earthling's life. Apparently this was around the age where earthlings would travel from youth, and into adulthood. It would seem to be the most appropriate time to tell him.

As I walked down the street with all these thoughts on my mind, as if called by my thoughts themselves, I suddenly bumped into my long lost twin brother. Hero Kaozaki.

"Oh! Hey Yami!" He said with a happy smirk as he realized who I was "Out to buy more snacks?"

I looked up at him with a steel expression. I wondered, after this weekend, would he continue to call me Yami? Or would it change into Eve? Sis maybe? I had no idea, but I guess that depended on how he would take things.

"Yeah, I guess so" I said with a small smile "Aren't you supposed to be at school?"

"I could say the same thing to you" He retorted with a smirk "Yuki Rito isn't anywhere around here, you know?"

"I told you, I'm here to buy snacks" I said with a bit brighter smile "Why are you here?"

"I don't know, just walking around with my own thoughts" he mumbled, an evident blush running over his cheeks.

It was obvious who was on his thoughts. Maybe that certain someone even was a bit of the reason he was here.

"It's not about a certain class rep, is it?"

His blush rose up to his ears, and I got confirmation. Of course it was about Kotegawa.

"Called it" I mumbled with a steeled expression.

"Is it that obvious?" He asked with a wry and nervous smile.

"It's as obvious as earth having only one sun" I mumbled quietly as I looked up at him "So, why are you actually here?"

"Well, I uhm…" He sighed silently and shook his head "I'm looking for something nice for Yui. Her birthday is next month so I thought I would get her something"

"This is the shopping district though" She mumbled quietly "Anything you might find, as far as I know, is pretty expensive"

"Yeah but… I think Yui deserves it" He said with a smile "She's been there for me from the start and… Can I tell you a secret?"

"Hero, I'm supposed to be an assassin from space" I mumbled with a raise of an eyebrow "Secret is my middle name"

"Haha, I guess you're making a point" He said as he sighed "I hope to work up my courage and confess to her on her birthday"

This was more of a surprise than anything to me. I was surprised that he had made up his mind and actually intended to tell her about his feelings. What worried me was how he would react if she ended up refusing, which was of course most unlikely, considering the facts, but I was still worried.

"Damn. So you're finally gonna do it huh?" I said as I looked up at him "You should have told her years ago"

"How do you know?" I mumbled with a pout "You only started at school a couple of years ago"

"Yeah, and already from the first day of knowing you, it was obvious you love her" I retorted quietly.

I hid a giggle under my sleeve as I saw the blush on his cheeks darken, but I just dismissed it and continued.

"Anyway, we're both here right?" I hurried to say this as he tried to hide his blush "Maybe we should go together?"

He shrugged softly and smiled.

"Sure"

I followed after him down the street. He was looking around, taking in everything around him. I knew how it felt. No matter how many times I would walk through here, I would always be overwhelmed about how lively everything seemed.

The happy faces of couples walking hand in hand. That one woman with her kid in tow, that kept screaming for ice cream. The group of children piling around a balloon seller, all reaching or wrestling with each other for their favorite ones. The beeping and explosions from the nearby arcade, and the yelling of a man who wanted to attract customers to his shop.

All of this melted together into the same symphony of peace, and tranquility. The peace and tranquility Hero had been lucky enough to have since childhood, and what I had required more recently as I met Lala, Rito and the others.

I was just hoping all of that wouldn't be ruined once he found out the truth.

~That Following Weekend, Hero's house. Hero's POV~

Finally weekend. A time to relax. Though this time, I was much too excited to relax. This weekend it would finally happen. I would finally become an adult. And with adulthood, I would finally work up the courage I needed. I would no longer be some scared little kid. I would grow a pair, and actually ask her out.

That morning, on my 18th birthday, I blasted down the stairs and into the living room, PJ's and everything. I could smell something delicious from the kitchen so I hurried out there, to find a spread of pancakes, bacon and eggs. My smile widened as I saw my father by the kitchen table and my mother stand by the stove.

"Good morning, dear" My mother said with a smile as she walked over and kissed my cheek "Happy birthday sweetheart"

I smiled and chuckled as she wrapped her arms around me and drew me in for a hug. Personally, I still couldn't believe I had actually turned 18.

"Thanks mom" I mumbled quietly, hugging her back.

My father sniggered quietly from his seat at the table and smirked up at me.

"Just don't come home drunk every weekend, okay?" He said with a chuckle "I don't need to clean up puke that often"

"I promise, I won't" I mumbled with a chuckle "Let's settle down and eat some breakfast, shall we?"

That morning, everything was normal. Everything was fine. But I had no idea what would come next.

~That following afternoon, at the local park~

That afternoon, I had gotten a phone call. Unexpectedly, it was Mikado sensei from school. I had no idea what she wanted with me, especially in a weekend, but she told me to come to the park so we could talk. I thought she just wanted congratulate me for my 18th birthday, but maybe that wasn't it?

No matter that, I went to the park. I was surprised to also find Yami and Mea with her, along with Lunatique sensei. I had no idea what the hell was going on.

"Hey girls. Good afternoon Mikado Sensei, Lunatique Sensei. What's up?" I mumbled as I approached them.

I got a little nervous as they shared an uncertain look with each other. Then, eventually, Mikado stepped forward.

"Hero, do you remember anything about your past?"

That was a weird question.

"No, nothing in particular" I said with a confused tone "I mean, I remember growing up with my parents, and going to school in town, making friends… But isn't that normal for any kid?"

She frowned silently at that answer, and sighed a little. What the hell was going on?

"Listen, Mikado Sensei, what is happening?" I asked softly as I looked at her "What did you want me for? Why are we here, and… why are you guys so nervous?"

They took a last wondering look at each other, before Mikado spoke again.

"We have something to tell you… You didn't exactly have a normal childhood… The people you know as parents… just be quiet and listen to me okay?"

I could sense the feeling of seriousness from her tone, so I settled down in the grass and began to listen to her story.

"Rito and Lala has told you about how Lala's father has a big part in a big war in space, correct?"

I nodded quietly. They had told me about that.

"Well, that war has been going on for many centuries. Around 17 or 18 years ago, a group of scientists on the enemy's side, had finally completed a sample of specimen that they believed could help their allies turn around the way of the war. Two of those specimen is right before you, as we speak"

Mikado gestured towards Yami and Mea, and they both nodded. I nodded along, as I knew as much from Rito and Lala. Mikado cleared her throat before continuing.

"You should also know that Yami and Mea consider Lunatique as their mother, as she had one of the biggest influences on their upbringing in the beginning of their childhoods.

But, one scientist in particular, was working on a third specimen in all secrecy, to use for his own evil purposes. Some say he was looking to become a great thief and villain, someone that would take what they want without remorse… He named the specimen, Black Void. Not even Lunatique knew about Black Void's existence.

But, as you might know, the research facility, as well as the group of scientists, were discovered by intergalactic space police, and they were either killed or imprisoned. The scientists had managed to create the three specimens, but before they could corrupt the young ones' minds too much, they were dragged away and imprisoned.

But since Black Void had nowhere to go, and too young to fend for himself, the royal army took him in. Though, after a few weeks the war began to grow more vicious and intense. The soldiers soon realized that if something were to happen, no one would be able to take care of the child, and that a child's youth is no time for him to experience the hardships of war, firsthand.

That is when I approached them, and offered them to take the child under my wing, until I could provide with a prober foster family. I had heard about the child ever since it was taken in by the soldiers, and I already knew of the problems that would arise.

I had the facilities to take care of the child, and since I'm staging as a nurse here on earth, I had more than enough knowledge and experience with kids, so I took the child off of the soldiers, and had it within my household for a couple of months. I finally managed to find a couple that were willing to take care of the child, despite fully knowing what he was capable of"

I could feel my throat tighten up and get dry. She didn't mean that i…?

"The child from then on, sprouted and became a fine young man. A man that would never even consider to hurt other people for his own trivial gains. A young man that had risen from a past full of violence, war and neglect, to a life filled with compassion, love and friendship. And the child was given the name… hero Kaozaki"

That was the final nail in the coffin. Until now I had been able to keep myself seated in the soft grass, but now I stood up in confused and angered frailty.

"You can't be serious! Me… a weapon!? Was my creation only to hurt and kill other people!?"

I was in complete disarray. I looked down at my hands. They were shaking from fear and anger. How could my parents just keep this from me!? The people I had trusted for almost 2 decades!? What the hell was even going on!?

"I know it's hard to digest, Hero" Mikado mumbled as she stepped towards me "But would you have preferred we had kept this from you? Let you discover what you are by yourself, and realize we never intended to tell you?"

Her voice was irritatingly calm and soft. How could she be like that when my entire world was basically crumbling around me!?

100.000 thoughts ran through my head all at once. I was a weapon. A weapon designed to go out and kill for the sake of war. Some kind of super soldier.

Then yet another thought struck me. How could I ever ask out Kotegawa after this!? If she knew I was an alien super weapon, how wouldn't she react!? Would she fear me!? I couldn't take that thought.

I looked up at the 4 women standing in front of me in anger. I suddenly saw them as enemies, people that had approached me out of nowhere and ruined my life. I could never look at myself in the same way again.

"Why?"

The words escaped my lips before I could even realize it. The girls looked up at me in confusion.

"What?"

My anger grew. My patience had been spent, and I looked up at them in rage.

"WHY KEEP IT FROM ME FOR SO LONG!? WHY LET ME LIVE A LIFE THAT ISN'T REAL!?"

Mea and Lunatique seemed to be the only ones taken aback by the anger in my voice, while Mikado and Yami seemed unfazed. It only pissed me off more though, as Mikado took another step and put a protective arm around my neck and drew me in for a tight hug, before whispering in my ear.

"Because we knew how easily you could snap, Hero" She whispered softly as she gave me a protective squeeze "If we had told you any earlier, we could have ended up with sending you on a murderous rampage"

I shivered all over and tried not to lift my arm and hit her across the face. An unknown intensity and anger was welling up inside me, and it terrified me. Now that I finally knew of what I really was, could I lose control at any moment?

I began to feel weak in her embrace and I slumped towards her. I blushed as I felt her pat my head protectively, and my blush only deepened as I felt the other girls surround me and hug me and Mikado in a tight group hug.

Instead of rage, I now began to feel a warm feeling spread from the pit of my stomach, and out into the rest of my body, as Mikado continued to press my head into her bosom.

"There's always one good thing Hero" Suddenly Yami spoke up, and looked up at me with a small smile "Now you have two sisters. And we'll always be there to support you, no matter what. Okay?"

The realization suddenly hit me. It was true. I had just found out that these two pretty and wonderful girls actually were my sisters. The thought made me extremely happy, and I felt weird as my angered fury mixed with blissful happiness.

"I will also be there for you, Hero" now it was Lunatique's turn to speak "Despite having not raised you, or been part of your creation, I will still act as much as a mother for you, as I do for Yami and Mea"

I nodded quietly, tears welling up in my eyes. This revelation had taken everything out of me, and I could only crumble to my knees as we continued to hug each other tightly into each other's bodies.

Still, one lingering thought ran through my head.

How would I ever break these news to the others? And how would Kotegawa react when she finally found out about the truth?


	4. Chapter 4 - A Princess' Reassurance

_To Love Ru_

 _Partners in Love_

 _Chapter 4 – A Princess' Reassurance_

~At the Kaozaki Residence, Hero's POV~

That day had been a complete and utter mess for me. When Yami, Mea and Lunatique suddenly revealed themselves to be my actual family, I had suffered a lot mentally. Who wouldn't in such a situation? Out of the blue, three people approach you, and reveal to you that everything you thought was fact is actually fiction, and that the people you thought were your parents really just adopted you when you were little.

I had a hard time accepting it, even now. When I had pulled my shit together and stopped crying in the arms of my newly revealed mother and sisters, we took a walk through town to try and talk through things, though of course that was tough. A certain awkwardness was hanging in the air between us, and not much was said.

When we finally arrived back at my house, I quickly said goodbye and ran straight up to my room, not even saying hi to my parents before running upstairs and slamming the door behind me in a confused fray. I tossed myself onto my bed, trying to make sense of my thoughts.

My biggest worry was not the awkwardness between me and my newfound family, no. It was more about Kotegawa and the others. How was I supposed to tell them about this? That everything they thought I was, was a lie? That I'm a deadly superweapon that, with the wrong move or word, could snap, and try to kill everything in my sight?

And with that, came another disturbing thought. If I did indeed snap, how would they stop me? How would I be able to control myself? And if not, what would happen then?

I was a bit scared of myself then and there. I had experienced Yami's and Mea's powers first hand several times, since they not only had demonstrated them on Rito when he pissed them off or embarrassed them, but also in several brawls on campus because of an outside threat. So if I was supposed to be even stronger than the two of them combined, how powerful would I really become if I snapped?

I was interrupted in my train of thoughts by a soft knock on the door, and I raised my upper body off of the mattress, supporting it with my arms, before answering.

"Yes, come in!"

The door slowly opened and my mother poked her head in to check on me.

"Honey, is everything okay?"

"I… I want to say yes but I do have a lot on my mind" I mumbled silently, looking up at her with a worried frown "I'm scared mom…"

She nodded silently and frowned sadly as she made her way over to me and silently wrapped her arms around me, in that protective embrace that I had known for so long.

"Listen Hero… I know that you're scared, who wouldn't be? If you're worried about your powers running loose, I know that you contain it if it will ever be necessary. You're a strong young man now, you know? You've always been strong. And I know that whatever happens, your friends will stand by you."

"H-How did you know that I…?!"

"Was worried about your friends?" She asked with a soft smile "I might be your adoptive mother, but I have been taking care of you almost all your life. You're my child, no matter the circumstances"

I smiled quietly and couldn't help but let a tear fall down my cheeks.

"You're awesome, you know that?" I mumbled, trying not to choke up, before burying my face in her shoulder "Can I ask you one last thing?"

"Mhm, of course"

"You know I told you about how I've fallen for this girl, right?"

She nodded silently and smiled as she rubbed my back.

"She's a close friend… How do you think I should tell her?"

"That shouldn't really be that complicated, sweetie" She said with a small smile "Do you trust this person?"

"Yes, of course I do" I said silently "She's always there for everyone she cares about, when they need support"

"Then, you should just tell her" My mother said with a sweet smile "If she's trustworthy, you know you can trust her to still be there for you, even when she realizes you have a side no one knows about"

I nodded quietly and smiled.

"What would I do without you and dad?" I said with a small chuckle "I guess you're right. I can never know until I've tried"

She nodded quietly and gave me a couple of soft claps on the back, before going back onto her feet.

"Come down soon, okay?" She said as she kissed my scalp "lunch is on."

I nodded to her and sighed as she headed for the door , but before she exited my room, she turned back around to look at me and smiled warmly at me.

"Hero… As much as you might be my adoptive son, I've still been there and taken care of you for 18 years now. I'm as much of a parent to you as I've ever been. And you can still trust me, okay?"

I blushed quietly and nodded silently, a feeling of guilt running over me. How could I even for a second have thought that my parents weren't trustworthy, after everything they've done for my sake?

My thoughts fell back to when I was younger, maybe 6 or 7 years old. I remember how I had gotten into a smaller fistfight, or something like that, with one of the other kids on the playground, and how my parents had gotten into a big fight with the other kid's parents in order to protect me from their scolding. Me and the other kids somehow turned into friends, but still, my parents had argued with other people to protect me.

They'd had always been extremely protective of me, and sometimes for good reasons. So the fact that I had doubted their trustfulness, filled me with guilt.

I sighed silently and bunked myself in the head.

"You're such an idiot sometimes, Hero…"

~A couple of days later, at school. Yui's POV~

I sighed silently and settled down in front of my shoe locker as I pulled off my shoes, having just arrived at the school from my short walk from home.

I was depressed that morning, for some reason. I just had this bad feeling that something had happened, something I couldn't explain. I had no idea if it was my instincts as member of the disciplinary group of the school, or it was something else, but somehow, I just knew that something was wrong.

That following night, my head had been filled with worry about Hero. Not only because I was afraid that Lala's freakish invention had tried to basically rip him apart, but before she had interrupted us, he had suddenly turned shy and nervous, and he was trying to tell me something.

What had he tried to tell me? I hadn't been able to rid my thoughts of that topic ever since, and I had had a tough time falling asleep.

I looked up from tying my indoor shoes and widened my eyes as Hero suddenly stood in the entranceway. When he realized I was sitting there, he blushed and turned away, before quickly walking into another aisle of shoe cubbies. Why would he suddenly try to avoid me? I looked after him and sighed as he disappeared.

"Everything feels wrong today…"

"Kotegawa? Are you okay?"

I widened my eyes and looked up. Momo and Nana Deviluke was suddenly standing over me, and gazing down at me with worried expression.

"huh? Oh hey girls. Yeah I'm fine, just a little worried" I said with an honest smile "Hero seems to be avoiding me lately…"

Nana nodded quietly and crossed her arms over her chest in worry.

"Yeah, I've noticed he seems a bit down lately" She mumbled silently. "He's been pretty unsure of himself ever since-!"

I widened my eyes as Momo suddenly slapped her hand over Nana's mouth, and forced her to keep quiet.

"Ever since a few days ago. Hehehe" She mumbled nervously, shooting Nana a glare.

I looked up at them suspiciously, but decided that Hero's apparent depression was more important than their secrets at the moment.

A small cat-like smile suddenly grew on Momo's lips and she smirked a little, wiggling her fingers.

"Guess we have to do something about it"

"Knowing you, it will probably be gross" I mumbled as I looked up at her "But at this point in time, I'm willing to try anything"

"Wow, rude" She said with a playful giggle " I was just going to… talk, to him"

"I'm sure you would, Momo" I said as I looked up at her knowingly "But whatever, do what you want to do. It's not like I can do it right now…"

"That's true" She said with another giggle "Alright, let me talk to him after school today"

Hmm. At least we had some kind of plan now. But still, I really couldn't help but have a horrible feeling about this.

~Later that afternoon, on the way home from school. Hero's POV~

I sighed silently and gazed down at the ground as I walked my way home. The depression I had built up hadn't left my mind yet, and I had even begun to avoid Kotegawa to try and prep myself to eventually tell her everything.

I just needed some time to myself. I had gone through a lot lately, and I just needed some time to cool off. To go for a walk seemed like the perfect way to do that, and like I had done so many other days when I was lazy or just didn't bother, I decided to say "Screw it", and forget everything about homework.

I quickly threw my bag at the foot of the stairs back at my own place, before kissing my mom on the cheeks and heading out. I just needed peace and quiet, maybe try to come up with strategy as to how I should tell her, if it was important to do it a specific place and what not.

I hadn't realized it before, but clouds were packing up in the sky overhead, and suddenly, as I was walking, the rain suddenly came pouring down strongly. It started out with slow heavy drops, warm, but still cold enough to send a shiver through my body as the very first one fell on the tip of my nose.

Then it suddenly intensified and became more and more powerful, and before I even knew it, I was soaked through, and running through the streets in a state mixed up of displeasure and panic.

I quickly arrived at the playground in town and dug under the overhead rood of the playhouse. I sighed silently and wrapped my arms around me, getting cold from how soaked through I was. I even began to shiver, and I rubbed my upper arms to get rid of the cold.

"Oh! Hey Hero! How long have you been sitting out there?"

I widened my eyes as I suddenly heard a sweet voice calling out to me from inside the playhouse I was sitting against, and I looked up and smiled as I realized it was Momo Deviluke.

"Oh, hey Momo" I said with a small smile "What are you doing in there?"

"Answering a question with a question?" She asked with a smile "Anyway, get in here, it's a bit warmer in here"

I nodded quietly and quickly crawled inside, sitting on the small chairs that had been set up for the kids playing at the playground. I sat opposite of her, as I thought that it'd be kind of crowded on the same side.

"What are you doing out here anyway, Momo?" I asked silently as I looked up at her "Aren't you supposed to be at home and, I don't know, do homework or something?"

"Honestly, do you believe I need that?" She asked with a giggle "My sister makes robots for a hobby, I should have learned a trick or two"

"Point taken" I said with a laugh. "But still, what are you doing in a playhouse of all places?"

"Well, it seemed to be pretty barren here today" she said with a small smile "And I like silence. It gives you space to think, you know?"

"What are you thinking of?"

"Well, I should be asking you about that, Hero" She said, her expression suddenly turning serious "You've been silent and distant lately. What's wrong?"

"H-Huh? N-Nothing's wrong Momo, I just have a lot to think about. Have Yami or Mea said anything?"

She nodded quietly.

"Yeah, everyone besides all the human students, and Rito, know that they're your sisters… But from what I heard, it seemed like you took it pretty well… and I honestly don't think that's what's wrong"

I frowned quietly and looked away with a sigh. I was still having trouble with being honest about my problems. But as much as I did have problems about that, I still wanted to get better at talking about it.

"Well… Since I've realized that I'm Yami's and Mea's brother, I've been worried…" I mumbled silently "What if I tell Kotegawa about what I really am, and she freaks out completely!?"

"W-Why would she do that, Hero?" She asked silently "She's accepted both Yami and Mea for what they are, why would she not accept you, of all people?"

"Because, I'm different from the two of them" I mumbled, gazing downwards "Yami and Mea had Lunatique, making sure they were never misused for the wrong purposes… Me on the other hand, I didn't have anyone like that. I was created by a man, who's goal was to use me as an inhuman killer machine, to use me in the galactic war… What if she thinks I'm going to snap, and kill everything?"

She frowned quietly and sighed as I ranted.

"Or what if we really do get together, and I at some point snaps? What if I can't control my powers, and what if I end up hurting her?"

I had been so focused on my own thoughts that I hadn't even realized that Momo had come over, and settled down beside me, wrapping a protective arm around my waist.

"Hero, you're downgrading yourself way too much" she mumbled with a warm smile "You're way too good of a person to ever lose control like that. And that's coming from a person who's only known you for a couple of months…"

I frowned quietly and sighed.

"But… No one even knows how powerful I can become… We don't even know when or why I will snap!"

"And when that time comes, we'll tackle it together, Hero" She said.

I sighed silently and cast my gaze away. I wasn't that optimistic about this, and I honestly didn't believe in it. I widened my eyes and blushed though as her hands suddenly rested against my cheeks and she forced me to look up at her.

"Hero, stop it!" She said, an unusually serious expression on her face "You're not like that. And if you eventually snap, we will stop you. Believe in yourself, and in your friends. We won't ever leave your side"

I couldn't help but burn up in a blush, and my shyness made me silent. She smiled quietly and hugged my head, letting me rest against her chest.

"You don't have to worry okay? I'm sure each of us can help stop your powers. And Kotegawa is you friend, Hero. An important friend. She would never betray you like that, okay?"

I just blushed and nodded. She was right. Kotegawa wasn't like that. In that moment, I decided not to focus on my powers, and instead focus on how I would ask her out. That might seem like more worrying, but at least it was better than worrying about if I would ever be responsible for hurting my friends.

Momo and I ended up sitting there for quite a while. The whole time I was sitting with my head against her shoulder, and each I would express how doubtful I was, she would pat my head and tell me everything would be alright.

"You really are like a mom sometimes…"


	5. Chapter 5 - Controlling The Darkness

_To Love Ru_

 _Partners In Love_

 _Chapter 5 – Controlling The Darkness_

~The following morning, Yui's POV~

That morning was dull and grey, and not only because of the cloud heavy skies overhead. I was in an even worse mood than yesterday, and people had begun to take notice, already when I went home yesterday. At least I managed to get a decent amount of sleep that night, so that wasn't a problem. Though I still felt sluggish and lazy that morning when I trudged into the entranceway and pulled on my in-door shoes.

I sighed a little as I stood up, but widened my eyes as Momo suddenly ran up to me from one of the other cubbie aisles.

"Kotegawa! I have something I need to ask you!"

"Oh? What is it Momo?"

"Well, I need to ask you for a favor!"

I raised my eyebrow, and my alarm clocks set off. Momo already had some crazy plan or something put together?

"Relax, it's not anything like that!" Momo said with a laugh "I just need you to come with me after school today!"

"Huh? W-Why? And where?"

"I can't tell you! I just need you to be there with me!"

I frowned quietly of suspicion. This set all of my alarms to maximum alert, and it screamed to the heavens, that someone would, somehow, end up naked. But still, I couldn't be sure.

"uhm, sure, if you want me to"

"Cool! I have classes, so I need to go! See you!"

And suddenly, she was gone as fast as she had appeared. I waved after her and couldn't help but wonder, what insane plot she had going in her head this time around.

~In the entryway, Hero's POV~

The day after I had talked to Momo at the playground, I walked into the school building as always, and tried to find my shoes, which proved to be quite the hassle this morning. For some reason, I couldn't really find them right away, but at least I managed to find them after some searching.

When I once again got back to my feet, Yami and Mea was suddenly standing there with bright smiles. Or Mea at least.

"Hero! We thought up a great idea!" Mea said excitedly "Since you've now "Come out" as a weapon-!"

"H-Hey! Shut up will ya!?" I shushed at her as I looked around me to see if anyone were listening in "I still haven't told everyone!"

I frowned quietly and pulled them over to a corner where we could talk in peace.

"Seriously Mea, you should hold that tongue of yours sometimes" Yami mumbled with a steelfaced look.

"Come on, that was an honest mistake" She retaliated with a giggle, before turning towards me "Well Hero, we all know how you're a little afraid of losing control of your powers as a trans weapon"

I nodded silently. That was the understatement of the year. If I had both of my sisters trans weapon abilities, and Yami already were capable of becoming as powerful as she were as Darkness, being capable of destroying entire planets with one strike, then what in the hell was I capable of?

"So, we thought up a game plan" Yami continued from where Mea left off "We thought we could go to my ship after school today and practice your control over your powers"

I nodded silently and smiled. As little hope as I actually had that I'd be able to control my powers, there was no damage in trying at least. Though how exactly I was going to practice how to control my powers, I was not exactly sure.

"Sure, that sounds like a plan" I said with a nod "Hey, can I ask you two a question?"

They looked at me with a nod.

"So… I've gotta tell those who don't know what I am" I said silently as my gaze fell in worry "How do you think I should approach it?"

"Well, that all depends on what it is that is holding you back" Yami said silently "What is it that you fear?"

"W-Well…" I mumbled silently.

What was it really I feared? My mom had already convinced me that if I really trusted my friends, they would never turn their backs on me. And if I really knew Kotegawa as well as I said I did, then why did I even consider her leaving my side an option? Was it the fact that I was unsure whether or not I actually trusted my friends?

"I…" I hesitated. I could not give a clear answer "It's tough to explain…"

Mea giggled a little and bit her lower lip before she grew a claw out of her hair.

"Alright, let me try something" she said silently.

Before I could prevent it she had pierced my neck and I felt my world around me shift. When I opened my eyes again, I was in a space of pink mist. Everything around me seemed to shift. Since I knew what Mea had done to me, I could quickly conclude where I was. I was now an imagined image of myself, in my own consciousness. I was a consciousness within my consciousness.

This was her trans ability. To infiltrate and read the mind of the person she had pierced the neck of with her claw. Since I knew Mea had her weird tendencies with… Licking and nudity, I was not entirely comfortable with knowing that she could now read my mind like an open book.

I blushed quietly as I suddenly felt a weird softness against my back, and I looked back to realize that Mea, completely nude, had pressed against my back, and placed her forehead on my neck.

"Ahh. I see now…" She said with a silent giggle "You're unsure whether you can entrust your friends with your secret or not…"

I nodded quietly and blushed as she pressed closer to me.

"I'm just really afraid to lose them all… Or any of them for that matter" I mumbled silently, trying to ignore the softness against my back "Especially Kotegawa"

"You know, I had the same problem once" She whispered in my ear "I was also afraid… Though I didn't have the luxury of choice in the end. When the school was threatened, I was forced to give away my identity to help deleting the threat"

I frowned quietly and looked up at her.

"So you're saying I'm lucky that I'm so torn?"

"That is not what I mean" She said with a shake of her head, her body pressing closer and resulting in a shiver running up my body "I'm saying you are lucky to have all the time in the world to decide. Cause I literally only had a few seconds"

She giggled a bit and floated in front of me, making me blush even more.

"Listen Hero, I'm not telling you what to do" She said with a smile as she reached up and cupped my cheek "But I am saying, that if you're willing to take a risk, I promise it will be rewarded. You're no different from Yami, nor from me. That school, and in this group of friends is where you belong. No matter what you might be"

I blushed quietly as I stared up into her eyes. I looked away, and gulped as I mulled over her words.

"So, let's go back, and go to Yami's ship for practice" She said with a smile, before planting a kiss on my scalp.

A blinding light and a moment later, and we were back in the physical world, surrounded by students as we had always been. Yami looked up at me expectantly, and I sighed silently as I looked at her with a smile.

"Make sure to train me well, Yami Sensei" I said with a smirk.

She just rolled her eyes and clicked her tongue with a smile.

~Later, at Yami's ship. Hero's POV~

"Since you have an exact copy of all our powers, Hero," Yami said as she walked around me "To activate them, you need to obtain complete and utter peace in your soul, or mind-wrenching despair"

Mea smiled as she walked around me in the opposite direction.

"And since we have nothing to cause despair," She said with a small smile "We'll need you to completely enter your mind for any thought"

I took a deep breath and tried to concentrate. That was easier said than done. With my fear of losing control the second I began to relax, and my worries of my friends' possible betrayal, it was hard to focus on emptying my mind.

That also explained why I had not gone berserk until now. I had always had this weird gut feeling, ever since I was little. This looming uncertainty, constantly. Since I was constantly frail-minded, I was never truly at peace, and therefore could not go berserk.

"In that case, wouldn't we want to keep me occupied?" I asked as I watched my sisters walk around me "I mean, don't we want me to control my powers?"

"It is exactly BECAUSE we want you to be able to control your powers that we must first activate them" Yami said as she stopped pacing and turned to me "Practice makes perfect. If you do not deliberately train your control over yourself, and you one day lose it, we can't guarantee that we'll be able to ever stop you"

"What makes you think you can stop me now then, without past training? What if I lose myself?"

"That's where I come in" Mikado said as she rose from the chair she had sat in until now. She had been with us the entire time, but had stayed silent until now "You see, if my suspicion is correct, and it usually is, the doctor who created you was in quite a rush when he was finishing the last details, the royal army about to pin him down and all that"

"Yes, and since I had a glitch in my darkness system," Yami continued "since he almost, what earthlings would call 'copy-pasted' my program code into your DNA, there's a large possibility that you have the same glitch"

"So you mean, if I have this glitch, some yet unknown outside force will be able to rip me out of the darkness phase?" I asked softly.

She nodded silently.

"Exactly"

Mikado frowned quietly and sighed a little.

"Though that is a risky way to do it though" Mikado said silently "If we glitch you out of the darkness phase too often, the glitch might spread to the rest of your program, which would basically kill you at some point"

I frowned quietly and clenched my fists.

"So I'm training for this so I can have a safe way to jump in and out of darkness?"

"That's right. And to be able to properly control your powers, and not let them run rampant."

I sighed silently and frowned. This was a lot to take in, but I was still willing to at least practice, to see if this had any kind of effect.

"Can you think of any outside forces that might have enough impact on you to pull you out of darkness?" Mikado asked with a frown.

My mind immediately rushed to the thought of Kotegawa and I together as a couple, and I blushed quietly and smirked as I looked up at her.

"I can name a few but… They might not be strong enough" I admitted silently. "Is it really safe to let me go to darkness today already?"

"Well, today we're only going to do some relaxation exercises" Yami said with a smile "We need to teach you to completely relax in order to activate Darkness, and deactivate it within your own control. Just in case you begin to lose yourself, we will use a special EMP signal to turn off the darkness program within your DNA, and stop your darkness from spreading"

Mikado smiled a bit and nodded.

"We've developed upon it ever since Yami lost herself to darkness at your school that one time" Mikado said with a smirk "We were going to use it in case Yami ever lost herself again, but it can also be used in this case"

I nodded quietly and sighed.

"Let's do this then…"

~After about half an hour~

I sighed silently and smiled as we finished the last exercise. I had to admit that I felt much more relaxed and relieved. Even though the weird feeling was still there, it was much better than it had ever been before. I smiled up at Yami and Mea as they wiped away the sweat on their eyebrows.

"Thanks guys for helping me…" I smiled and bent in my back "This really helped on my mood"

"We're only happy to help" Mea said with a small smirk "Do you need a bath before you take off?"

"That actually sounds awesome" I mumbled with a tired sigh "I'm sweating like a pig"

"it's just down the corridor and left at the third door" Yami said with a smile.

I nodded and smiled before heading down the hall. I was sweaty and warm, so a bath was just what I needed.

I entered the bathroom and sighed as I opened the water, before stripping down and jumping into the bathtub, feeling my tense muscles beginning to relax even more than before.

"Control my powers huh?" I mumbled silently, frowning a little in worry "Will I even be able to do that?"

I closed my eyes and sighed again, a certain situation forming in my head. I pictured myself walking down a battlefield, bodies and burning buildings everywhere. Whatever weapon I had formed with my trans ability would be dripping with blood, and in front of me was a poor soul who had dared to oppose me, now sprawled onto the ground, with wounds all over his body, begging for mercy.

"That isn't me, but…" I mumbled silently as I gazed down at my hand "if I don't get this under control…"

"I'm fairly certain that you will"

I widened my eyes and looked around me in surprise. Did I imagine that? I thought I heard a girls voice, but when I looked around me to check, there was no one in sight. Was I already going crazy?

Suddenly out of nowhere, a loud splash obscured my vision, and as I fumbled my way forward in a panic, my left hand suddenly got in contact with something soft and pillow-y. And as the water and the steam cleared, I blushed dark red.

It was Nemesis, a trans weapon, and the one Mea used to refer to as Master. Her true intensions, beside occasional chaos for her own amusement had always been unknown, and it had also been her that had pushed Yami beyond the limit of her usual self, and turned her into Darkness not that long ago.

And now she was sitting in front of me, naked, and my hand had somehow found its way onto her breast! I scooted away from her in panic with a yell, and instinctively covered myself up.

"N-N-Nemesis! What the hell are you doing in here?"

She giggled quietly and leaned her cheek against her hand silently.

"I just wanted to finally introduce myself to the last member of the trans weapon trio" She said with a cute giggle, water drops running down her skin "I wanted to check out your potential"

"C-Could you not do that when I'm taking a bath!?" I babbled in complete disarray.

"Well, toying with people like Rito and yourself has always proved an amusement to me" She said as she got on all fours and crawled towards me "Your flustered expression is simply the cutest"

I couldn't tell if she was teasing me or flirting with me.

"In any case, I can see potential in you" She continued as she crawled closer "As a trans weapon, you can definitely be useful"

"U-Uhm, if you think you're gonna use me as you did with Yami…"

She had crawled so close at this point that our faces was only inches away from each other.

"Of course not" She said with a smirk "I've already had my fun with you guys. I'm just saying, a servant with your powers can prove quite useful, if you learn to control said powers"

"What is that to you?"

"Hehe, it doesn't matter what I want" She said with a smirk, now even pressing against my chest with her own.

I got stunned in embarrassment, making weird sounds as I felt her skin against mine as she stared into my eyes.

"I'm saying…" She said, a serious look in her eyes "What would happen if people off of your tiny planet, learned that three of the most powerful weapons in the entire galaxy, resided on the same planet?"

I widened my eyes as I realized what she meant.

"Will they go to earth to retrieve you? To use you for their own personal gains?" She asked silently "Or will they simply destroy the planet, as they see you as a threat to the very galaxy you reside in?"

"Now that that is out of the way," Her smirk grew a little as she turned her back to me and leaned against my chest "How about you wash my back? You could prove further useful as a private servant"

"L-Like hell I'm gonna wash your back!" I yelled in embarrassment.

She suddenly disappeared and I was pushed a bit further, before she came back into view behind me and wrapped her arms around my chest, a tickling feeling running up my stomach.

"Come on" She whined with a small pout "Just a bit!"

She pressed against my back and I blushed, trying to stand up and force her off of me. She suddenly grabbed my leg and I yelped as I fell back into the tub, making a weird turn midair, pulling her with me. When I finally opened my eyes and I was done rubbing the back of my head from pain, I realized that she had somehow ended up on top of me.

Once again I was stunned into silence, but she just giggled as she gazed down at me with a smile.

"Yes… You definitely have potential"

She giggled a little and laid down on top of me, whispering into my ear.

"If you ever want power, just think of me and I'll come by" She whispered "I could train you"

And with a wink, she stood up and dematerialized, and formed into a dark fog, before disappearing out of the open bathroom window.

"G-Geez… The nerve of that one…"


End file.
